Hi, I am doing some research on Chinese hacking of defense contractors. There has been a great deal of attention in the news about the various Chinese theft of IP from U.S. companies, but far less about hacking efforts directed at other states. Does anyone know, for instance, whether the indigenous components used in the Shenyang J-11 (against the PRC's agreement with Russia for the Su-27 production deal) were developed by hacking Rosoboronexport servers and stealing engine/avonics from Sukhoi engineers?

Thanks.

bourbon

03-01-2013, 07:02 PM

Hi, I am doing some research on Chinese hacking of defense contractors. There has been a great deal of attention in the news about the various Chinese theft of IP from U.S. companies, but far less about hacking efforts directed at other states. Does anyone know, for instance, whether the indigenous components used in the Shenyang J-11 (against the PRC's agreement with Russia for the Su-27 production deal) were developed by hacking Rosoboronexport servers and stealing engine/avonics from Sukhoi engineers?

Thanks.
They would use various sources and methods; there would be many different target requirements in such a project.

There is a lot of Chinese HUMINT activity in Russia doing industrial espionage. There are a couple of cases each year that make the news. The same with Ukraine. You can still buy a lot of technology for from defense industry insiders, the mob, or corrupt officials (sometimes a person is all 3).

Also consider the timetable; you could buy anything in Russia during the 1990's* - they could have gotten documentation then, before the Chinese really got into cyber-espionage. Likewise, they could have hired the actual Russian scientists - who's families were starving at the time - to go work in China.

I doubt the Russians even know the full story.

fyi:
http://en.rian.ru/russia/20110708/165082151.html

* Seriously, the Japanese cult Aum Shinrikyo bought for cash - from a Kremlin official - the entire production process for Sarin gas; knowledge they then used to gas the Tokyo subway system in 1995.